Ballarat California – Inyo County Ghost Town

Ballarat, California, is a near-ghost town and unincorporated community in Inyo County, located in the Panamint Valley at the base of the Panamint Range, west of Death Valley National Park (elevation about 1,079 feet).

It was founded in 1897 (some sources say 1896) as a supply and recreation hub for mines in the surrounding canyons, particularly after discoveries in the Panamint Range. The site had earlier use: Post Office Springs, about a quarter-mile south, served as a reliable water source since the 1850s for emigrants, prospectors, and even outlaws who used a mesquite tree mail drop in the 1870s.

The town was named after the famous gold-mining city of Ballarat in Victoria, Australia, reportedly at the suggestion of Australian immigrant George Riggins.

Heyday (1897–1905)

In its peak years, Ballarat had a population of 400–500. It functioned primarily as a provisioning and entertainment center for miners rather than a mining town itself. The nearby Ratcliff (or Radcliffe) Mine in Pleasant Canyon was a major producer (about 15,000 tons of gold ore from 1898–1903), and the broader area yielded nearly a million dollars in gold.

Known businesses and services in its boom period included:

• Seven saloons (a key attraction for relaxation and “frolic”).
• Three hotels.
• Wells Fargo station (important for transport and finance).
• Post office (opened 1897; closed 1917).
• School.
• Jail and morgue.
• A general store or supply stores and a blacksmith shop (earlier establishments).
• No churches were reported.

It was described as a “jumping-off place” for prospectors heading into the mountains, with adobe structures, burros, and a rough, lawless character typical of late-19th/early-20th-century desert mining camps.

Decline

The town declined rapidly after the Ratcliff Mine suspended operations around 1903–1905, as other local mines played out. By 1917, the post office closed, and Ballarat became a virtual ghost town, with only a few die-hard prospectors remaining.

A handful of “desert rats” lingered into the 20th century. In the 1960s, developer Neil Cummins bought land and attempted a revival (including building a general store), envisioning tourism, but it did not materialize on a large scale.

Later History and Notable Residents

• Seldom Seen Slim (Charles Ferge, c. 1881–1968): The town’s most famous long-term resident and often its sole inhabitant from around 1918 until his death. A classic solitary prospector, he lived without modern amenities (claiming not to have bathed for years except by splashing water outdoors) in a trailer or Volkswagen after adobe buildings deteriorated. He was known for his colorful quotes, such as “Me lonely? Hell no! I’m half coyote and half wild burro,” which appears on his grave in Ballarat’s Boot Hill cemetery (the 28th and last burial there). A peak in the area is named after him.
• Frank “Shorty” Harris (1857–1934): Legendary Death Valley prospector (“single blanket-jackass prospector”) who discovered major strikes like the Bullfrog district. He lived in Ballarat off and on (including in the old schoolhouse) until near his death and is buried elsewhere in Death Valley beside friend James Dayton.
• Other figures: Assayer Fred Grey (long-term resident); Chris Wicht (kept a saloon open longer); gunman “Jim” Sherlock; George Novak (prospector and later caretaker with son Rock).

Modern era (late 20th–21st century): The town has had minimal permanent residents. Rock (or Rocky) Novak, son of George, served as caretaker/”mayor”/sheriff/judge/undertaker for years (moving there around 2004), running a bare-bones general store/museum selling sodas and sharing history, operating a small motel, and maintaining vintage items (including a truck linked to the Manson Family). He has since moved to nearby Trona, with the store occasionally managed by others. Ballarat now has around 1–2 full-time residents at times.

It remains a stop for tourists, four-wheelers, and campers (up to hundreds in winter). Nearby connections include the Manson Family’s use of Barker Ranch (south of town) in the late 1960s, with some graffiti and a reputed truck in Ballarat. The 1969 film Easy Rider filmed a scene here. A 1971 hippie festival led to a hepatitis outbreak. It has also appeared in other media.

Today, visitors see adobe ruins, the cemetery, the operating (or intermittently operating) general store, and desert scenery. It is privately owned in part and serves as a gateway to Panamint Range explorations.

Ballarat exemplifies the boom-and-bust cycle of Western mining towns—brief prosperity followed by abandonment, sustained only by hardy individuals and passing travelers. Its isolation and colorful characters have made it a enduring symbol of the Mojave Desert’s rugged history.

Notoriety

In 1968 and 1969, Charles Manson and his “family” moved into Barker Ranch. The town of Ballarat was Mansons last link to civilization and served as a supply source for his desert exploits. Not to caste the town with the murderer, the town also supplied the arresting officers who raided Barker Ranch and subsequently arrested Manson and his family.

Time has taken its tole on the builds of the adobe buildings. Wind and water are literally melting the builds back into the desert.

Today, Ballarat is the subject of a few odd television shows and again made headlines with the Ballarat Bandit. In 2003, George Robert Johnston camped around Ballarat and Death Valley. During this time, he committed burglaries before leading investigators on a chase across the desert.

Ballarat Personalities

4×4 Trails near Ballarat

References

• NPS